


You used to shine so brilliantly

by karovie



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Blood, Happy Ending, Hurt Lance, Hurt/Comfort, I think?, Panic, Song fic, Worried Keith, singing Keith, worried everyone
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-17
Updated: 2016-09-17
Packaged: 2018-08-15 12:18:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8056027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karovie/pseuds/karovie
Summary: Lance has discovered Keith's secret without the red paladin's knowledge. As the two find themselves in a dire situation, said secret ends up revealed to the entire voltron team.





	You used to shine so brilliantly

**Author's Note:**

> The first song is “$ting” by “The neighbourhood” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ncwyx.Ard4c
> 
> The last song is “Mental illness” by “Goodnight neverland” https://goodnightneverland.bandcamp.com/track/mental-illness
> 
> Maybe listen to these while reading? :)  
> The title as you can see is from the last song, which is also the inspiration for this fic. I have a headcanon of Keith being a secret singer and these songs have stuck to me since I first heard them. I can’t get the image of Keith singing them out of my mind. 
> 
> Also: THANK YOU TREESNAIL FOR EDITING THIS!!! (Go read her voltron fic it's insanely good!)

Lance was the only one who knew Keith’s secret. Keith didn’t even know he knew. He’d found out completely by accident. It was so endearing he’d kept quiet and hid to make sure Keith wouldn’t know he knew. He’d never dreamt of teasing him for it. It didn’t even bother him that the other paladin had yet another thing he was better at.    
  
Keith found comfort in music. That said, most people did. But the red paladin didn’t have headphones or a music player or anything to keep his music on. No. The guy had memorized lyrics, and was probably singing them in his head most of the time. But when he was alone, he sang out loud.  And he was good. Damn he was good. It was a miracle no one had caught him sooner.

 

Keith was all he could think about as he fell to his knees, clutching his side where the warm liquid seeped from the wound. The two were the only ones in this area, and Keith was off fighting some Galra soldiers somewhere. Lance had been too, until he’d been taken by surprise. He shot the creep once he saw him, but it had already been too late. 

 

Of course the shot had hit where the armor didn’t protect him. Sure the black flight suit was some real tough shit, but it couldn’t keep them safe from everything.    
  
He stood on his knees, swaying slightly as he clutched at his wound. Shit. What was he supposed to do now?   
  
He activated his comm.

 

“Keith, buddy? You done yet?” 

 

“Kind of in the middle of something here Lance,” Keith grunted from the other side of the line. 

 

“Oh, well, I’ll just… lie down for a bit, yeah?” he didn’t think he could get back up from his position on his knees anyway. He looked around himself, noting there was no more enemies in his area. He’d probably be dead already if there were.

 

He heard Keith laugh.

 

“Yeah, sure. Why don’t you get some beauty sleep,” the red paladin shot back. That didn’t sound like such a bad idea, actually. Except he didn’t think there’d be much “beauty” in it.

 

“Sí, sí,” was his only response. 

 

Lance didn’t move from his position, though he thought it’d be better to lie down. He just couldn’t make himself do that. The only thing he managed to do was sit down upon his feet. He looked up into the sky and noted how beautifully the blues and reds melded into purple above him. Red and blue.  _ Wanna make purple?  _ He chuckled, and then groaned as pain spiked through his body. He’d have to use that as a pick up line once. Then he realized what he’d thought and reprimanded himself internally. They were supposed to be rivals!

 

“Lance?” it was Keith through the comm again. Oh wait had he remembered to shut it off at his end? “Lance, are you alright?” Keith sounded… almost worried. 

 

“Peachy,” Lance replied, trying to sound normal. He didn’t want to sound weak, though his mind kept screaming at him to get help. 

 

“I’ll be there soon,” Keith sounded alarmed.

 

“Yeah, alright,” he breathed.

 

Lance swallowed hard and felt his strength seep out of him. He swayed, and finally couldn’t manage to sit up any longer and ended up crashing to the stony ground on his side. 

  
  
  
  


**.......::::Voltron::::.......**

  
  
  
  


Keith did not like the weakness he heard in Lance’s voice. They had flown a pod to this spot on the planet and had planned a surprise attack on the small amount of Galra soldiers in this area while the others had flown their lions in the direction of the main fleet. Keith had not been very comfortable leaving Red on the ship and using a little pod to get there. He felt exposed. He’d gotten so used to the comforting presence of the great metal lion, that leaving without her just felt wrong. But their reports had said there would only be a few. Not enough to be worried about, but still an amount that needed to be dealt with.

 

Now something must have happened, and they had no way of getting out of there. The galra had taken out their pod in the skirmish. They had even taken out their own ship to make sure the paladins had no way of escape without getting help from their friends.

 

The two paladins had split up. 

 

Sliding his sword through the last Galra soldier’s chest, he turned on his heel and made his way towards where he saw Lance last. He could hear his laboured breathing on the comm, and at one point he’d heard a crash as though someone collapsed to the stony ground. He didn’t know what he expected to find, but it would likely not be anything good. Of course this had to happen when they were alone. 

 

“Shiro, something must have happened to Lance, I’m on my way to him now. We don’t have any chance getting out of here, the pod’s out of commission,” 

 

“We’ll be on our way, give me an update when you get to him,” came Shiro’s slightly static response. 

 

Keith picked up his speed, running in the direction of Lance. His heart rate sped up as he saw the amount of soldiers that lay dead in Lance’s area and realized the other paladin really had had his hands full.

 

He froze at the sight of the blue paladin lying on the rocky ground. It wasn’t the first time Lance had gotten hurt, but it didn’t make it any easier. The last time, Keith had a chance to get away and  _ do _ something. This time, though? No. There was no one else around. 

 

“Lance!” he called out as he sprinted over. The blue paladin didn’t move, but as Keith got closer he could see him moving his gaze in the red paladin’s direction. 

 

At least he wasn’t dead. Yet. 

 

Keith sat down on his knees in front of Lance, carefully putting a hand on his shoulder. Groggy eyes swiveled to look up at him, and a small smile graced Lance’s face. 

 

“Hi there, buddy,” Lance breathed. 

 

“What happened?” Keith asked as he looked the other boy over. Lance was clutching at his side, and when Keith looked closer, he found there to be blood. A lot of it. 

 

“A Galra gun got a little bit too friendly,” the paladin grinned at his own cleverness. 

 

“Shiro, did you catch that?” Keith asked urgently into the comm. 

 

“Yeah, how bad?” 

 

“He’s bleeding a lot from a shot in the side of his abdomen, and he’s getting weaker,” 

 

“Hey! I’m not weak!” Lance tried for strong and confident.

 

“Keep pressure on the wound to stop the bloodflow. We’re on our way!” Shiro’s side of the comm crackled so much so that Keith barely caught the last words. 

 

“Shiro, you’re breaking up on me!” Keith called out.

 

It was silent except for static noise. 

 

“Quiznak!” he yelled. Then, he remembered Lance, and how he was supposed to keep calm as to not worry him more than necessary. 

 

Keith took a deep breath and focused his whole attention back to Lance. The other boy was giving him a sad smile, as though he thought he was about to die. Keith did not like that smile. 

 

“I need you to turn over so I can stop the blood,” he said as he moved to help him. Lance tried his best, but in the end, Keith did most of the work. He held Lance steady so he wouldn’t just fall over on his back like he would have if he didn’t have assistance.

 

Lance still held his hand over his wound, and Keith decided to just place his own hands atop his. The blue paladin hissed at the renewed pressure, but otherwise kept quiet. 

 

“They’ll be here soon,” Keith tried to comfort him. He really didn’t look good. His breathing was picking up, and there was fear in his eyes though he tried to hide it.  

 

“Will you sing for me?” Lance suddenly asked, and Keith was taken aback at the question. 

 

“What?” his voice cracked a bit in his shock. He’d never sang for anyone before. People shouldn’t even know of his singing. Not even Shiro knew about that. So how did Lance?    
  
“I… I heard you once… you’re really good… you shouldn’t hide it,” he smiled up at him. 

 

Keith’s face turned hot as a flush took over his complexion. He swallowed and looked away. His heart was beating wildly in his chest. He didn’t know if he could even manage to sing right now. He decided he should try get in contact with the others instead.

 

“Shiro? Pidge? Hunk? Can anyone hear me? Allura? Anyone?” 

 

No one replied. The static continued. He cursed under his breath. 

 

Silence stretched between them as Keith tried his best to stop Lance from bleeding out. It was nerve wrecking to sit there like that and wait for the others to come rescue them. They had no clue how long it would take. For all they knew, Lance wouldn’t make it that long. 

 

No. He had to stop thinking like that. 

 

He desperately tried to pull up some kind of song to play in his mind to distract himself.

 

It wasn’t easy in such a situation, but he finally managed to pull one up. Or parts of it at least.

 

_ You say that you love me _

_ But you act like you don't _

_ You used to adore me _

_ Laughed at all of my jokes _

_ Don't take this the wrong way _

_ You put me in harm's way _

 

_ When we had our first kiss it was your favorite thing _

_ And you weren't lying when you said it would sting _

_ Don't take this the wrong way _

_ You put me in harm's way _

 

_ Imagine our children _

_ How fucked would they be? _

_ Mommy's a psycho _

_ Daddy lives in a dream _

_ Don't take this the wrong way _

 

_ I told you I'm sorry _

_ Couldn't thank you enough _

_ I thought that I loved you but _

_ We weren't in love _

_ We weren't in love _

 

He trailed off in his mind as he looked down at Lance again. He was watching him with bleary eyes and a sappy weak smile on his face. 

 

It sent a nail through Keith’s heart. 

 

Lance was getting far too absent at this point.

 

“Guys! We really need you to get here now!” Keith called into the communicator with a fearful tone. He really couldn’t take Lance dying on him. They needed to be here  _ now _ !

 

“Lance, stay with me!” he urged the other boy. There was no response. “Fine! I’ll sing! Just stay with me okay?” He was so scared. 

 

He racked his brain and then started singing a random lyric he remembered from somewhere.

 

_ “ _ _ Stars will guide us home, with the moon glow _ __  
_ Through the darkest storm, I will hold your hand _ _  
_ __ Love will carry on, I can feel your heart

 

_ Your sad eyes tell stories of your soul _ _  
_ _ Labeled by medicine takes it's toll _

 

_ Mental illness lies within the soil of every mind. _

 

_ Stars will guide us home, with the moon glow _ __  
_ Through the darkest storm, I will hold your hand _ _  
_ __ Love will carry on, I can feel your heart

 

_ Close your eyes to see… You used to shine so brilliantly.”  _

 

Keith’s voice broke at the last word as he thought about Lance, so terrified his brilliance would be snuffed out. He felt tears burn in his eyes. He knew he hadn’t started at the beginning of the song, and he had probably messed up some of the lyrics somewhere but still, he kept going, barely keeping his voice audible as he watched Lance close his eyes, still with that small smile on his lips.

 

_ “You are not what they've said about you _ __  
_ That's not your worth and you don't deserve that _ __  
_ You used to shine so brilliantly _ _  
_ __ like stars at night surround the sea,” 

 

He didn’t know if Lance was still awake. His eyes were closed and his body lax. 

 

_ “Stars will guide us home, with the moon glow _ __  
_ Through the darkest storm, I will hold your hand _ _  
_ __ Love will carry on, Love will carry on,” 

 

He didn’t hear the others arrive. Didn’t realize they weren’t alone anymore. His entire focus was on Lance, and Lance alone. Then, there were hands on his shoulders, and someone took over the care for the injured boy. Keith panicked as the blue paladin was taken away from him, but then Shiro was there, hugging him, calming him.

 

“Keith, it’s alright, we’re here,” He was guided into the black lion, and it didn’t take long until he was stumbling out and in the direction of the medical bay. His heart was racing and his surroundings blurred as he followed his friends.

 

Everything was unfocused, except for Lance’s form in the cryopod. It was heartbreaking seeing him in there, even more so this time than the last. This time the blue paladin had practically bled out in his arms while he could do nothing but wait. 

 

He absently registered Shiro trying to make him sleep, but soon giving up as he realized he couldn't get through to him. The only thing they’d managed to get him do, was change out of his armour, and eat the occasional meal as long as it was brought to the medical bay.

 

Then came that blessed moment where the cryopod opened up. Hunk was the first one to envelope Lance in a crushing hug, while Keith anxiously kept to the back, watching the scene. 

 

“You’ve got to quit doing that!” Hunk cried as he held on to his best friend. The others agreed wholeheartedly. 

 

“We thought you were a goner for sure at that heartbreaking scene,” Pidge piped up. 

 

“What?” Lance was confused.   
  
“Don’t you remember? You asked Keith to sing. We all heard it, by the way, even if for some reason Keith couldn’t hear us responding, and when we arrived he was so broken down he could barely get the words out and you were unresponsive. Hell the guy couldn’t even shut up, he just kept humming and humming even after you got in the pod!” 

 

Keith hadn’t realized he’d done so and his face turned as red as his jacket. His mouth was in a thin line, and he stared wide eyed at the others as they then turned to him. His heart beat rapidly in his chest.

 

“He was great, though, wasn’t he?” 

 

It was Lance who spoke up, a huge, warm smile gracing his face. The others agreed. 

 

Keith swallowed. The panic at the attention for something he’d kept secret for so long kept him frozen in place, but the compliment was slowly thawing him back up. He’d been so insecure of his singing…. That’s why he’d kept it secret. 

 

“Thanks for keeping me alive, buddy,” Lance winked at him, and- when had he gotten this close?- hugged him. Keith wanted to run. Everyone knew his secret and now Lance was hugging him and it was too much at the same time, but Lance held on tight, and it felt so good and oh god he was gonna cry at this point.

“Hey, it’s alright, breathe,” Lance murmured in his ear as the red paladin’s breathing came fast and shallow. “Follow my lead,” the other added and took exaggerated deep and slow breaths. 

 

It took a while, but Keith finally managed to time his breathing with Lance’s and it helped calm him down. He wrapped his arms around his friend and finally dared to press his face in the crook of his neck. He clung to him, taking deep breaths to keep himself calm. 

 

He had no idea how long they stood there like that, but he felt tremors go through Lance’s body, and it dawned on him that the guy had just come out of a cryopod and was in need of rest and food. 

 

He loosened his hold on Lance and gently pushed him away. Keith noticed the others had left them alone and was secretly grateful for it. He guessed it was Shiro’s idea, and vowed to thank him later.

 

“Is my mullet-man back yet?” Lance commented with humor in his voice and Keith punched his arm in a friendly manner.

 

“You ruined the moment,” he muttered and turned to walk away. 

 

“Aww, come on! I thought we bonded!” Lance called as he followed Keith out of the medical bay. 

 

“You ruined it,” he called back with humor and then he realized what Lance had said and froze in his tracks. “Wait… ‘My’?” 

 

Lance just passed him with a mischievous grin on his face. 

  
“Lance! What did you mean by that?” Keith’s face was red again as he stalked after the other boy. The blue Paladin said nothing and just hastened his step. “LANCE!” Keith picked up his pace as Lance started laughing where he jogged to the dining hall. 

**Author's Note:**

> for those who might be itnerested, I have a otp playlist on spotify :) https://open.spotify.com/user/karovie/playlist/1p8t0LvvABgaUzuRq4Ip9u
> 
> and for those who read my Merlin fics and know of my editor Castielsbee, I have not cast her aside, don't worry :) she's still my editor, and I have not forgotten about Prattish destiny either. I'm just a little bit stuck at the moment. but I will be back with more! :) (probably both more Voltron and Merlin tbh)
> 
> as always, comments are life!


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